That is how Arizona State football coach Herm Edwards has described his return to coaching this fall after a nine-year sabbatical with ESPN.

Fun in the fact that the former Monterey High defensive back is in his realm, in his comfort zone on the sidelines — a place he’s spent 30-plus years as a player and coach.

Frustrating because the Sun Devils are perhaps two plays away from being 5-1 instead of 3-3 going into tonight’s home game with Stanford.

“We’ve lost three games by one score,” Edwards said. “We have had opportunities to make plays on either side of the ball. The effort is there. But mistakes against good football teams cost you.”

The Sun Devils will be facing their fourth nationally ranked team in the Cardinal, once upon a time a rival of Edwards’ when he played at Cal.

“In my opinion that program starts with coach (David) Shaw,” Edwards said. “He is one of the best college coaches in the country. We want to become that team, where you’re competitive in conference.”

Edwards has already achieved part of that goal. The Sun Devils have losses by seven points to San Diego State, Washington and Colorado, who are a combined 15-4.

“We’ve outscored teams 169-127, but we’re 3-3,” said Edwards, whose has lost all three games on the road. “That’s (road) been a problem here in the past. We’re trying to build a culture here.”

Edwards spent eight years in the NFL as a head coach for the Jets and Chiefs, taking four teams to the postseason. Prior to that he was the assistant head coach in Tampa Bay.

After nearly a decade of analyzing NFL games for ESPN, Edwards couldn’t resist the temptation to return to the sidelines in a completely different situation, coaching college football.

His only experience as a college coach came after a nine-year NFL career with the Eagles, when he spent a season as a defensive backs coach at San Jose State.

“It has been everything I’ve anticipated,” said Edwards, who intercepted 33 passes in his career and recovered arguably the most famous fumble in NFL history with the Eagles, known as the “Miracle at the Meadowlands.”

“It’s what I do. I’m so thankful for being back and building a program,” Edwards said.

Picked to finish last in the Pac 12 South Conference, the Sun Devils are 1-2 on conference play, facing a Cardinal team that’s dropped two straight after opening with four straight wins.

“Bryce Love has been hurt,” Edward said. “So that hurts their running game some. But Stanford has done a good job throwing the ball down field. It forces your DBs to make plays.”

In Arizona State’s 28-21 loss to 5-1 Colorado, it gave up a pair of touchdowns. It also failed to hold a seven-point lead, allowing 14 unanswered points in the second half.

“It’s not just talk, it’s real,” Edwards said. “Players are realizing that. Down the stretch, hopefully we can be in position to win these games by making a play in big moments. It’s part of the journey.”

Success against Stanford starts with the Sun Devils being able to run the ball. Edwards has made it clear that he is committed to grinding on the ground this fall.

“Stanford can possess the ball for long periods of time,” Edwards said. “But so can we. The running game has been pretty good the last couple of games for us.”

While most college teams average between 15 to 17 possessions a game, the Cardinal and Arizona State hover around 10 and 11 possessions a game — in part because of sustained drives.

“We’re only averaging 10 possessions a game,” Edwards said. “Part of that is we haven’t done a good job on third down this year. Both these teams are right on the hump in their divisions.”

Where the Sun Devils have been good is at home, where they’re 3-0, having outscored the opposition 117-44.

“This is my first year in this conference,” Edwards said. “I’m learning a lot about the coaches I am coaching against and the personnel we’re playing against. Success doesn’t happen overnight.”

Edwards, who also spent a season as a shutdown cornerback at MPC, also has a more realistic idea of his own personnel, which included nearly 80 players that came with the job.

He’s wasted little time incorporating his recruits into the lineup, starting four freshman on defense this fall.

“That’s fine,” Edward said. “But at some point, you hope the veterans take over. You hope some of those guys are making the plays for you, especially on offense where there is veteran leadership.”

While the 2-0 start, which included an upset win over Michigan State temporally had the Sun Devils nationally ranked, Edwards tempered his excitement.

A loss to San Diego State, which is 5-1, the following week was a reminder that the program has a lot of work in front of it if it wants to retain national status on a weekly basis.

“We have a lot of things to clean up,” Edwards said. “What I like is we’ve been competitive in every game. We realize where we could be. At the same time, we know where we are.”